Hong Kong finally moves to extend labour rights to the gig economy
Ensuring delivery workers have the right to injury compensation will be a breakthrough as the city strives to enhance labour protections
Under the proposal, those who sustain injuries or die “as a result of an accident arising out of and in the course of performing platform work” related to food and goods deliveries are entitled to compensation. In cases of injury, workers would be entitled to payments for sick leave, medical expenses, compensation for permanent incapacity, and the cost of surgical appliances. In cases of fatalities, the proposal offers death compensation, medical attendance and funeral expenses.
Gig workers have long been left in a grey zone when it comes to labour protection. While they have become indispensable to urban life, especially during and after the pandemic, they have too often worked without the clear statutory safeguards that traditional employees take for granted. The gap is unfair to those who risk their safety rushing to deliver our meals and shopping.
The lack of basic protection may also deter others from joining this line of work, which undermines the city’s goal to make the best use of its manpower resources amid structural economic shifts.
Hong Kong had an estimated 114,000 delivery couriers and ride-hailing drivers in 2023, accounting for around 3 per cent of local employment. Regulation of ride-hailing services is on the way, while the proposal for the protection of delivery workers will be tabled in the Legislative Council within the year.